The Blue-Eyed Barista
by Ketchupwings
Summary: Aster goes into a cafe and meets a white-haired waiter with eyes as blue as the ocean. Somehow, he can't seem to get this waiter out of his mind...
1. Chapter 1

**My first Rise of the Guardians fanfic! I rewatched the movie last night and got my feels up...and so, here's the story...**

"Honestly, Tooth, I don't have time for this," Aster Bunnymund grumbled into his phone as he sat down at a table in the café, taking refuge from the heavy snow outside.

"Oh, please, Aster!" Toothiana, his best friend, pleaded. "Please!"

"I really don't have time to eat dinner with you guys," Aster protested. "I have a lot of work to do, you know. Preparing affidavits and all that. Being a lawyer is stressful."

"I'm sure it is, but are you sure you couldn't spare one night with your friends? North's gonna be in town, and Sandy just got back – oh Aster, please say yes."

Aster sighed. "Fine. I'll be there."

"Yay!" Aster could practically see Tooth doing a little leap into the air. "Okay, my place, seven thirty, okay?"

"Sure, Tooth. I'll be there."

He hung up and sighed.

"You'd think that being a lawyer in a small town like Burgess, Massachusetts would be easy," he muttered.

As he sat moodily, staring out the window, he suddenly heard someone clear his throat.

"How can I help you?"

Aster turned around, and found himself face to face with a young man. His skin was extremely pale, but not in a bad way – it made the barely noticeable freckles on his cheeks a tad more visible. His eyes were the bluest shade of blue your eyes could ever get, and he was tall, very slim and lean. What really drew Aster's eyes, though, was his hair. It was messy, and spiky, and as white as snow.

Aster blinked. "Um, hi."

The young man nodded cheerfully. "I'm Jack Frost, and I'm going to be your waiter-slash-barista for today."

"Um, thank you."

Jack Frost cocked his head. "Aren't you going to tell me what you want to eat or drink?"

Aster nodded. "Yeah, I'll just have a Caesar salad, thanks. And leave the dressing on the side."

Jack smirked. "Sure." He winked at Aster, then left.

Aster sat there, stunned. Had that waiter just winked at him? Was he – flirting with Aster?

Aster had always considered himself bisexual. He'd dated both men and women before, and he'd never seen anything wrong with that. His parents had, of course. He'd grown up in a strict Roman Catholic family, and when he'd come out to his parents, they had refused to accept him. So he'd left his hometown in Australia and moved to the US. He'd lived here ever since.

"I'm not gay," he told anyone who asked. "I'm not bi. I'm not straight. I just like what I like."

Tooth and Aster's other friends had accepted him immediately for who he was, and he was thankful for that.

Now, he texted Tooth, saying, _omg i think the waiter's flirting with me.._

Within seconds, Tooth texted back, saying, _rlly? boy or girl?_

_Boy_, he texted back.

Just then, Jack Frost returned with Aster's salad. "Here you are," he grinned.

Aster accepted his salad with a smile. "Thank you, Jack," he responded.

Jack placed the salad on the table in front of Aster. "Are you Australian?" he asked.

"Yup," Aster responded. "And proud of it."

Jack laughed. "Awesome! I've always wanted to go to Australia. I like Australians." He winked again at Aster.

Aster sat stunned, and Jack grinned again. "Oh! Before I forget – your napkin." He placed a paper napkin in front of Aster.

Aster thanked him. As Jack left, though, Aster noticed some writing in the corner of the napkin.

_Jack Frost – 555-1345_

Okay, Jack was _definitely _flirting with Aster. The lawyer felt himself blush. He took out his phone and called the number.

Sure enough, Jack, on the other side of the café now, answered his phone. "Hello?"

"My name's Aster Bunnymund," Aster said into the phone, looking right at Jack.

Jack whirled around when he heard Aster's voice, and grinned at him. "Nice to meet you, Aster Bunnymund. I'll see you around?"

"Sure," Aster said, and disconnected. Jack smiled at him again, and then went into the kitchen.

Aster texted Tooth, _Ok, that waiter is _definitely _flirting with me_.

Tooth texted back, _Aster, i want a full report. tell me EVERYTHING 2nite_.

_Will do_, typed Aster, then switched off his phone screen.

He paid for his salad. As he was leaving, Jack came up to him and said, "Leaving?"

"I have to," Aster replied. "I have to go back into the storm outside." He gestured at the whirling snow that seemed determined to smother the entire town of Burgess in a blanket of feathery white.

Jack chuckled. "Okay, Bunny."

Aster choked. "What did you call me?"

"Bunny. That's how you're saved on my phone." Jack showed him his phone screen. _Aster Bunny_.

"It's Bunnymund," Aster growled.

"I know. I just think that a cute guy deserves a cute name." Jack flashed him a cheeky grin. Before Aster could say anything, he bounced away.

As Aster stepped into the snowy coldness, he thought about Jack and his blue eyes. He had an adorable smile, Aster couldn't deny that.

Stepping on board a bus, he took out his phone and checked that Jack's name was still there, on his phone. He smiled. Jack Frost.

A mischievous spirit.

**Yes, yes, it's not a very long first chapter, but I'm generally not very good with first chapters...reviews are appreciated!**


	2. Chapter 2

**The next chapter! Dinner at Tooth's house...**

"Let me in!" Aster called through the door. "It's freezing out here in the snow!"

The door swung open.

"Asterrrr!" Tooth squealed, leaping at Aster throwing her arms around him. "You're here!"

"I am," Aster grunted. "Now please disentangle yourself from me!"

Tooth obeyed, but a grin was still plastered on her face. "Soooooooooo?" she asked.

"Sooooooooo what?"

"Jack Frost," Tooth winked, and Aster groaned.

Just then, their other friends came to the doorway: Nicholas North, although they all called him just North, and Sandy Anderson. North was a big, beefy, muscular man with a snow-white beard. He lived in St. Petersburg, Russia, but often came to visit Burgess. Aster and Tooth often teased North, saying that, in an alternate dimension, he could be Santa Claus.

Sandy was mute. He was short and somewhat stout, with spiky blond hair and one of the kindest smiles on the planet. He always seemed to dress in yellow, for some inexplicable reason.

North swept Aster up in a bear hug. "Aster, old buddy!" he cried. "How you doing?"

"North, you're crushing my ribs," Aster gasped.

"Oh, sorry." North released him.

Sandy grinned at Aster, then lifted his hands. _How are you, Aster?_ he asked in sign language.

Before Aster could respond, Tooth jumped in to answer. "Aster's doing very well right now," she grinned and winked at Aster. "C'mon, let's go and eat."

**~~Page Break~~**

"_Spasibo_, Tooth," North chuckled as he put down his knife and fork. "That was a fantastic dinner."

Aster murmured in agreement and Sandy bobbed his head enthusiastically.

"Thank you, thank you," Tooth trilled. "Just remember you all remember to brush your teeth afterwards! Don't want those beautiful teeth to get dirty now, do we?"

Aster rolled his eyes.

"Now, Aster," Tooth said, a smile creeping over her face, "tell us about this waiter."

Aster felt his cheeks flushing.

"Come on, tell us!" Tooth wheedled. North and Sandy leaned forward, interested.

Aster sighed. "All right," he said, and he told them everything. He told them how Jack Frost had winked at him, how he'd smirked and made conversation with Aster, and then how he'd written his phone number on his paper napkin.

Tooth was having a little fit by the time he was done with his story. "Adorable!" she squealed. "500% adorable!"

"Tooth, calm down," Aster instructed her.

"Okay, okay." Tooth smoothed down her brightly coloured dress. "What does this waiter look like?"

North nodded, and Sandy leaned even further forward.

Aster sighed – again. "Well, he's got white hair, which is weird. I don't know why he has white hair. But he's tall, lean, has the bluest eyes you'll ever see, and a nice smile as well."

Tooth bounced up and down on her seat. "Stop, you're killing me!" she cried. "He's perfect for you!"

"Tooth, stop," Aster said seriously. "Every time I see a cute guy or girl, you instantly believe that that person is made for me, and you go out of your way to arrange dates between us."

"That's so not true," Tooth protested. "I've set you up with lots of great people. Like Eva."

"She was a lesbian who used me as her beard."

"Okay, then Ashley."

"She cheated on me with four other guys."

"Stanley?"

"He moved to Alaska."

Tooth slumped. "Okay, maybe I haven't found the right one for you yet. But just you wait, Aster!"

Aster raised an eyebrow, and Tooth sighed. "Okay, you're right. I won't meddle this time."

"Thank you." Aster nodded in appreciation.

The rest of the dinner passed with North regaling the other three with hilarious tales of his life in Russia. Aster's sides began to hurt after a while, he was laughing so hard.

When it was time for them to leave, they all hugged. When Aster went to hug Tooth, she said, "Aster, are you sure…?"

"Yes, I am, Tooth," Aster said gently. "He's probably around 21. And I'm 36. There's a huge age difference between us."

Tooth nodded. "Yeah, you're right." She sighed. "It's a pity, though. It's been so long since you went out on a date with someone, Aster."

"I'm too busy. In fact, I'm so busy I have to skedaddle to do some paperwork at home." Aster kissed Tooth's cheek and then he was off.

On the bus ride home, Aster's phone vibrated. He took it out.

He'd just received a Facebook friend request from Jack Frost.

Aster smiled, and accepted. Jack's profile picture was one of him smiling at the camera, revealing cute dimples and a set of snow-white teeth which Tooth would probably coo over for hours on end.

Aster frowned. He'd been serious when he told Tooth he didn't have time for a relationship in his life. He worked 6 days a week, and when he _wasn't_ at work he was so busy catching up with paperwork that he didn't have a lot of free time at all. He couldn't have a relationship now, he simply did not have time.

But he couldn't deny it – the memory of those blue eyes and bright smile was intoxicating.

**So what did you guys think of this chapter? :P please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Soooooo I realize it's been more than two and a half weeks since I updated this story...sorry about that, I've been a bit busy lately...but hey, back to the story!**

The snow lay thick on the ground – very thick. A white, feathery quilt that covered the entire town of Burgess. According to the news, it was the most snow the town had seen in almost twenty years.

Aster stepped out in his front door into the thick snow and exhaled. His own breath took the form of mist, and he watched it dissipate into the cold morning air.

Today was a Sunday, and he was determined to enjoy it – and he was going to begin it with a walk in the park.

Bundled up in several layers of coats and sweaters, Aster trudged through the snow towards the park. It was only about 9:30am, and yet there were already children playing and shouting and throwing snowballs at each other. Aster smiled at the innocence he saw before him.

Aster strolled leisurely through the park, whistling as he walked. Christmas was only a few weeks away, so he whistled Christmas classics as he watched the children play around him.

Suddenly, a snowball hit him, right on the shoulder. Aster whirled around, to find Jack Frost smiling at me a few yards away, his gloves still sprinkled with snow.

"Jack!" Aster exclaimed. "What're you doing here?"

"Enjoying my weekend, same as you," Jack responded, trotting up to Aster.

"You're up early."

"So are you," Jack countered. "So, what're you doing?"

"Just walking and watching the ankle biters goof around," Aster admitted.

Jack sniggered. "Ankle biters?"

"Oh, be quiet."

Jack chuckled again, and they walked together in companionable silence for a while.

"What's new with you?" Jack inquired. "I haven't seen you in a few weeks now."

"Not much. Work. Talk to my mother every month or so. More work. Watch movies online in the few spare moments that I have. More work. Maybe a quick McDonalds meal. More work. Yeah, my life is pretty monotonous, I'll tell you that."

"I can tell," Jack smirked. "Yeah, my life's not much better. I'm pretty busy too – you wouldn't believe what hard work it is being a waiter-slash-barista."

"You seem to handle it pretty well."

"_Seem_ is the critical word in that sentence."

Another lapse into comfortable silence.

"Australia," Jack said. "What's it like in Australia? How many kangaroos are there in each city? Do you all walk upside down?"

Aster looked at him in alarm, but the twinkle in Jack's eyes told him that he was just joking. "Yes, absolutely," Aster replied sarcastically. "I'm still getting used to walking right-side up. My God, America is so strange."

Jack laughed. "Do you miss Australia, then?"

Aster pondered that question. "Not really." It was true. Aster loved his country, but Australia held nothing for him – nothing but parents who refused to accept him for who he was. Parents who were so conservative that he'd had to move to the other side of the planet to get away from them.

"No, I don't miss Australia," Aster confirmed.

Jack must've sensed something in Aster, because he stopped asking about Australia.

The two of them walked around the park, when Jack suddenly stopped.

"Hey, Aster," he said. "If you're not doing anything today – how'd you like to go see a movie with me?"

Aster thought about it. Was this a date? It didn't seem to be one – Jack hadn't really asked him out. Just two friends going to see a movie together. "Sure. I have nothing to do today. Let's go see a movie. Which one did you have in mind?"

"_Catching Fire_," Jack responded eagerly. "Did you watch the first movie?"

"Yeah, I did," Aster grinned.

"Great!" Jack exclaimed. "What time do you want to meet up, then?"

**~~Page Break~~**

"It's not a date," Jack said into his phone, blushing furiously, as he pulled on his socks and shoes.

"You could've fooled me," came Sophie Bennett's voice on the other side.

Jack sighed. "I should've known you'd begin teasing me," he complained.

"I'm sorry, Jack, but really, it sounds like you have a crush on him."

"I don't! Sophie, he's a friend, okay? A new friend, and I'm eager to get to know him."

"Mm-hmm. Keep telling yourself that, sweetie."

Jack sighed again. "Okay, I've got to go now. Talk to you later?"

"Yes. Yes. I want a full report."

Jack hung up, and, pulling on his favourite blue hoodie, left his apartment.

He and Aster had arranged to meet at the cinema at 8pm. Jack arrived a little early, at 7:50, and spent a few minutes waiting for Aster. The Australian showed up at 8pm on the dot.

"Hi." Jack's heart skipped a beat, and he cursed himself.

_Aster's just a friend_, he reminded himself. _Just a friend_. Even so, Jack couldn't deny that he found Aster's deep voice really sexy. Or that Aster was just his type – tall, muscular but not too muscular, broad shoulders, and eyes that Jack constantly found himself getting lost in.

"Hi." The Aussie grinned at him. "Shall we go in?"

The movie was pretty good. Jack thought it stayed reasonably true to the novel, which of course he'd read. Afterwards, on the way home, he and Aster had a vigorous debate about whether Katniss was better suited to Peeta or Gale. Aster was so funny – he made so many jokes that Jack constantly found himself bent over laughing his butt off. He hadn't laughed so much in a long, long time.

They reached Jack's home first. Jack turned to say good night to Aster.

"See you around, buddy," he said.

Aster's gorgeous eyes twinkled, and Jack cursed himself again. "You know, I might find myself in need of a cappuccino pretty soon," the Australian warned Jack.

Jack grinned. "Drop by the café then."

"Will do," Aster promised.

They stayed there a minute longer, then Jack turned and walked into his house, and Aster turned and continued his walk home.

The door shut, and Jack leaned against it. What was that? God, he hadn't been feeling this happy in a long time. With a grin on his face, he leaped upstairs to his bedroom, two stairs at a time. Stripping off his clothes and rolling into bed, he fell asleep very quickly.

**I know Catching Fire isn't out _yet_, but still I had to have them watch it, because I'm actually really excited myself about watching it! Anyhow, please review and tell me what you thought about this chapter. **


End file.
